2 Kings 18-20

Introduction

2 Kings 18-20 is paralleled in: Isa. 36-38, 2 Chron. 20.

To this point in 1 & 2 Kings we’ve seen:

All of the 17-18 kings in the northern kingdom of Israel: “do evil, forsake Yahweh, walk in the ways of Ahab, or something similar. Not one good king.

In the southern kingdom of Judah they do a bit better with 4-5 clearly evil kings and maybe 6 “good” (mostly mixed, call them the “least bad”) kings with Asa being the one we call “good” and even he “left the high places”

This morning: Good King Hezekiah:

2 Kings 18 Hezekiah's Reign Begins; Sennacherib Invades Judah

2 Kings 18:1–12 KJV

1 Now it came to pass in the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign. 2 Twenty and five years old was he when he began to reign; and he reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name also was Abi, the daughter of Zachariah. 3 And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that David his father did. 4 He removed the high places, and brake the images, and cut down the groves, and brake in pieces the brasen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it: and he called it Nehushtan. 5 He trusted in the LORD God of Israel; so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor any that were before him. 6 For he clave to the LORD, and departed not from following him, but kept his commandments, which the LORD commanded Moses. 7 And the LORD was with him; and he prospered whithersoever he went forth: and he rebelled against the king of Assyria, and served him not. 8 He smote the Philistines, even unto Gaza, and the borders thereof, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city. 9 And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, that Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against Samaria, and besieged it. 10 And at the end of three years they took it: even in the sixth year of Hezekiah, that is the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel, Samaria was taken. 11 And the king of Assyria did carry away Israel unto Assyria, and put them in Halah and in Habor by the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes: 12 Because they obeyed not the voice of the LORD their God, but transgressed his covenant, and all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded, and would not hear them, nor do them.

Hezekiah:

Got rid of all the idols that for centuries had led his people astray.

He was a champion for the worship of the one true God.

We know this not only from 2 Kings 18, but also from 2 Chronicles 29–31, which relates how Hezekiah cleansed the temple, reinstated Passover, and reorganized the priesthood.

11: “did carry away Israel” God’s judgement is full and sure unless we are covered by God’s grace and His mercy is seen in all except His final judgement. Nations and people!

2 Kings 18:13 KJV

13 Now in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah did Sennacherib king of Assyria come up against all the fenced cities of Judah, and took them.

Sennacherib’s message to Hezekiah (14-18)

King Hezekiah sends a message to the Assyrian king saying he will pay whatever tribute (money and valuables) Assyria demands if they will leave Judah alone, so the Assyrians demand a huge payment of silver and gold.

However, after Hezekiah pays the tribute, the Assyrian king breaks his word and sends his commander (the Rabshakeh RAB-shuh-KAY) with a large army to surround Jerusalem and demand its surrender anyway.

2 Kings 18:19–22 KJV

19 And Rabshakeh said unto them, Speak ye now to Hezekiah, Thus saith the great king, the king of Assyria, What confidence is this wherein thou trustest? 20 Thou sayest, (but they are but vain words,) I have counsel and strength for the war. Now on whom dost thou trust, that thou rebellest against me? 21 Now, behold, thou trustest upon the staff of this bruised reed, even upon Egypt, on which if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it: so is Pharaoh king of Egypt unto all that trust on him. 22 But if ye say unto me, We trust in the LORD our God: is not that he, whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah hath taken away, and hath said to Judah and Jerusalem, Ye shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem?

The Assyrian commander mocks King Hezekiah and the people of Judah, claiming that trusting in Egypt or in their God won't save them because Assyria is too powerful.

He insults their religious faith and boasts that the Assyrian army will easily destroy Jerusalem just like it has destroyed every other city that opposed them.

22: “We trust in the LORD our God: is not that he, whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah hath taken away”.

Rabshakeh’s Challenge

Rabshakeh challenges Hezekiah to a bet, saying that if Assyria gives Judah 2,000 horses, Judah couldn't even find enough men to ride them, proving how weak and defeated they already are.

He then mocks Hezekiah for thinking Egypt will help them or that their God will save them, claiming that Assyria has already destroyed every other nation and their gods couldn't stop them either.

The commander tells the people of Jerusalem that they should surrender peacefully to Assyria and agree to be taken away to a good land, rather than stay and die from starvation during a siege.

2 Kings 18:35–37 KJV

35 Who are they among all the gods of the countries, that have delivered their country out of mine hand, that the LORD should deliver Jerusalem out of mine hand? 36 But the people held their peace, and answered him not a word: for the king’s commandment was, saying, Answer him not. 37 Then came Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, which was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder, to Hezekiah with their clothes rent, and told him the words of Rabshakeh.

Rabshakeh had no idea who the living God of Israel was and had Him confused as the same as the god’s of Assyria and the other nations

2 Kings 19 "Hezekiah's Prayer and God's Response"

2 Kings 19:1–7 KJV

1 And it came to pass, when king Hezekiah heard it, that he rent his clothes, and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the LORD. 2 And he sent Eliakim, which was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz. 3 And they said unto him, Thus saith Hezekiah, This day is a day of trouble, and of rebuke, and blasphemy: for the children are come to the birth, and there is not strength to bring forth. 4 It may be the LORD thy God will hear all the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king of Assyria his master hath sent to reproach the living God; and will reprove the words which the LORD thy God hath heard: wherefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that are left. 5 So the servants of king Hezekiah came to Isaiah. 6 And Isaiah said unto them, Thus shall ye say to your master, Thus saith the LORD, Be not afraid of the words which thou hast heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me. 7 Behold, I will send a blast upon him, and he shall hear a rumour, and shall return to his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.

Hezekiah goes to the house of the Yahweh. “Now, the house of God is not the only place where God is, but I'll tell you what, if it's the right kind of house of God, God ought to be there.” -Pastor Kenny Baldwin

The Message to Hezekiah (8-13)

Rabshakeh sends messengers to King Hezekiah with a letter warning him that no god has ever been able to stop the Assyrian army from conquering a city.

He lists all the nations and their gods that Assyria has defeated, trying to scare Hezekiah into surrendering without a fight.

He claims that Jerusalem's God won't be able to save them any better than the gods of all those other destroyed cities.

2 Kings 19:14–19 KJV

14 And Hezekiah received the letter of the hand of the messengers, and read it: and Hezekiah went up into the house of the LORD, and spread it before the LORD. 15 And Hezekiah prayed before the LORD, and said, O LORD God of Israel, which dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; thou hast made heaven and earth. 16 LORD, bow down thine ear, and hear: open, LORD, thine eyes, and see: and hear the words of Sennacherib, which hath sent him to reproach the living God. 17 Of a truth, LORD, the kings of Assyria have destroyed the nations and their lands, 18 And have cast their gods into the fire: for they were no gods, but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone: therefore they have destroyed them. 19 Now therefore, O LORD our God, I beseech thee, save thou us out of his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the LORD God, even thou only.

This one, that I can remember, had never noticed

Isaiah’s Word from the Lord (20-24)

Isaiah delivers God's message saying Jerusalem should despise and mock Sennacherib for his arrogance and blasphemy against the Holy One of Israel.

Finishing like this:

2 Kings 19:24–28 KJV

24 I have digged and drunk strange waters, and with the sole of my feet have I dried up all the rivers of besieged places. 25 Hast thou not heard long ago how I have done it, and of ancient times that I have formed it? now have I brought it to pass, that thou shouldest be to lay waste fenced cities into ruinous heaps. 26 Therefore their inhabitants were of small power, they were dismayed and confounded; they were as the grass of the field, and as the green herb, as the grass on the housetops, and as corn blasted before it be grown up. 27 But I know thy abode, and thy going out, and thy coming in, and thy rage against me. 28 Because thy rage against me and thy tumult is come up into mine ears, therefore I will put my hook in thy nose, and my bridle in thy lips, and I will turn thee back by the way by which thou camest.

God reminds Sennacherib that all his conquests—cutting down cedars, drinking foreign waters, and destroying fortified cities—were only possible because God had planned them long ago, not because of Sennacherib's own power.

the Lord says Sennacherib will be like a pigheaded animal with a ring in his nose and/or a bridle in his mouth. Or like ancient sources tell that captives were led before a king by a cord attached to a hook or ring through the upper lip and nose.

That’s how Yahweh was to sending him back to his own country.

2 Kings 19:29–34 KJV

29 And this shall be a sign unto thee, Ye shall eat this year such things as grow of themselves, and in the second year that which springeth of the same; and in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruits thereof. 30 And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall yet again take root downward, and bear fruit upward. 31 For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and they that escape out of mount Zion: the zeal of the LORD of hosts shall do this. 32 Therefore thus saith the LORD concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with shield, nor cast a bank against it. 33 By the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and shall not come into this city, saith the LORD. 34 For I will defend this city, to save it, for mine own sake, and for my servant David’s sake.

2 years they’ll be under siege, the 3rd they’ll plant and harvest again

30-33: The remnant of survivors will be those that will cover the land again after the exile and captivity in Babylon. A down payment on the promise of the deliverance of the nation of Israel and ultimately of all those in the family of the LORD

34: “for mine own sake”: Sennacherib had directly challenged the Lord’s faithfulness to His word (v. 10), the faithfulness of God was at stake in this fight with the Assyrians

2 Kings 19:35–37 KJV

35 And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the LORD went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses. 36 So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh. 37 And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword: and they escaped into the land of Armenia. And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead.

miraculous answer to prayer

2 Kings 20 "Hezekiah's Illness and Recovery; the Babylonian Embassy"

2 Kings 20:1–11 KJV

1 In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz came to him, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live. 2 Then he turned his face to the wall, and prayed unto the LORD, saying, 3 I beseech thee, O LORD, remember now how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore. 4 And it came to pass, afore Isaiah was gone out into the middle court, that the word of the LORD came to him, saying, 5 Turn again, and tell Hezekiah the captain of my people, Thus saith the LORD, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will heal thee: on the third day thou shalt go up unto the house of the LORD. 6 And I will add unto thy days fifteen years; and I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city for mine own sake, and for my servant David’s sake. 7 And Isaiah said, Take a lump of figs. And they took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered. 8 And Hezekiah said unto Isaiah, What shall be the sign that the LORD will heal me, and that I shall go up into the house of the LORD the third day? 9 And Isaiah said, This sign shalt thou have of the LORD, that the LORD will do the thing that he hath spoken: shall the shadow go forward ten degrees, or go back ten degrees? 10 And Hezekiah answered, It is a light thing for the shadow to go down ten degrees: nay, but let the shadow return backward ten degrees. 11 And Isaiah the prophet cried unto the LORD: and he brought the shadow ten degrees backward, by which it had gone down in the dial of Ahaz.

Hezekiah reminded the Lord in prayer of his piety and devotion to God.

He didn’t specifically ask to be healed.

Maybe Hezekiah wept because: (1) he thought his death would give Sennacherib cause for boasting; or (2) his son Manasseh was too young to become king. (3) based on the rest of the chapter, maybe he just didn’t want to die because of pride

2 Kings 20:12–21 KJV

12 At that time Berodachbaladan, the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present unto Hezekiah: for he had heard that Hezekiah had been sick. 13 And Hezekiah hearkened unto them, and shewed them all the house of his precious things, the silver, and the gold, and the spices, and the precious ointment, and all the house of his armour, and all that was found in his treasures: there was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah shewed them not. 14 Then came Isaiah the prophet unto king Hezekiah, and said unto him, What said these men? and from whence came they unto thee? And Hezekiah said, They are come from a far country, even from Babylon. 15 And he said, What have they seen in thine house? And Hezekiah answered, All the things that are in mine house have they seen: there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shewed them. 16 And Isaiah said unto Hezekiah, Hear the word of the LORD. 17 Behold, the days come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store unto this day, shall be carried into Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the LORD. 18 And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon. 19 Then said Hezekiah unto Isaiah, Good is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken. And he said, Is it not good, if peace and truth be in my days? 20 And the rest of the acts of Hezekiah, and all his might, and how he made a pool, and a conduit, and brought water into the city, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 21 And Hezekiah slept with his fathers: and Manasseh his son reigned in his stead.

Even after the miraculous delivery of Judah and personal healing, pride gets Hezekiah

That pride will be judged along with the nation as it’s exiled into Babylon

And to Hezekiah, being at peace as a slave sounds better than fighting to follow God and warring with the nations and the flesh

NT consistently teaches that faithful struggle against sin, temptation, and opposition is more valuable than comfortable compromise—the opposite of Hezekiah's "peace in my days" approach.

Conclusion

We see Hezekiah faithfully going to God when his world is faced with destruction. That ought to be our model no matter what we face, no matter how big or how small.

King Hezekiah knew the living God, and therefore made many wise decisions that set his nation on the right spiritual path.

Yet we also see him struggling with some of the same sins that are tempting for all of us:

Pride, fear, and doubt

Martin Luther famously described justified sinners as simul justus et peccator—a phrase that describes Hezekiah perfectly. When translated, this Latin phrase from the time of the Reformation means that a person is “at the same time righteous and a sinner.”

This is who we are in Christ until his second coming: justified by God and therefore righteous in his sight, yet still fallen and therefore continuing to sin in many ways.

Romans 8:1 “1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.”

But if you’re NOT in Christ the struggle will be empty and only leads to destruction:

John 3:16–18 “16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”